Windy Sydney

It's no secret that I wander over to Mormon.org and chat with the missionaries every once in a while. I usually bring up things like racism, polygamy, the "translation" of the Book of Mormon, and general intolerance for other people, but lately I have been asking these questions over and over again:

"Why can't women become bishops, stake presidents, or hold the priesthood?"

"Why can't women bless their own babies?"

"Why are women told that they should stay home and raise children?"

"What if they don't want children?"

Now, you can probably imagine the wealth of information that spews from the young missionaries on their message program. They are not the best informed people, but don't try telling them that. It will get you nowhere. Especially if you are playing the role of an investigator. They assume you have no idea what you are talking about, and you can't possibly grasp the wonderful message the church gives because you simply haven't prayed enough.

Yesterday I was chatting with a young man named David. I told David that I was very curious why women were not given the same opportunities as men inside the church leadership structure.

He told me that men and women were perfectly equal.

Really? Equal, David? Really??

Call me crazy, but if it were equal women would be able to be bishops, stake presidents, apostles and so forth. Women wouldn't have to find a man to give her child a blessing. Women wouldn't need to confess her sins to a man. There is no equality there.

David tried. He really did. He went on and on about how God wanted it this way, and that we all have our "divine roles." I couldn't help it. I had to ask him.

"David, what is my divine role as a woman?"

To be a wife and mother.

I was so offended. I was sooooo angry. I told him that his statement was sexist, and it felt like I had stepped back in time 50 years. He told me that I just didn't understand the context of his statements and beliefs... yeah... it's *MY* fault.

He then went on to say that the power of the priesthood wasn't something he asked for. He even used the word "burden."

I said, "If you don't want the priesthood, and a woman does, how is that fair to anyone? Why must our entire lives revolve on what gender we are?"

He never responded.

Andee

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I just checked my email and found this in my inbox.


I would like to address the person who sent it to me...

Dearest Asshat,

Are *you* serious?

I am not sure what makes me sadder, the fact that you are participating in an email campaign to limit the chances of an AMAZING singer just because he is gay, or that you are a bigot and you will never truly understand what it is like to accept people for who they are.

Adam Lambert has more talent in his pinkie finger than most of the people on the Billboard 100 list. Don't get me wrong, I haven't cast any votes for anyone this year. I haven't really been paying too much attention... but it is clear from the videos I have seen online that the guy could walk away with a recording contract and millions of fans.

Who the fuck cares if he is gay?

What does that have to do with anything?

He isn't a gay singer in a straight singing competition, he is a singer in a singing competition.

Asshat, let me ask you a quick question...

Would it be okay if people started an email campaign against someone because they were black? Because they were Hispanic? Because they have blue eyes?

Of course not.

I really don't understand how you can't see how bigoted and self-righteous you are by even CONSIDERING being a part of this campaign.

Frankly, I don't care to talk to you anymore or exchange emails with you. I am not going to sit back and keep my mouth shut about it, either.

I'm not friends bigots.

Andee

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I have ranted about baptism for the dead a million times. I am going to do it again. You have been warned.

It has been revealed that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has baptized the mother of Barak Obama, the current President of the United States, into the faith even though she lived as a Catholic her entire life and never once expressed interest in the Mormon Church. Did the church have a family member's expressed permission to perform this ceremony? No. Just like holocaust victims of past, the president's mother is now listed in the LDS database.

I am at a loss as to how Mormons don't understand how wrong this is. They want people to understand and respect them for their beliefs, yet they show no respect for others. I don't get why they assume God would require some silly ceremony on earth in order to reach heaven...

Let's pretend that a young man, born a Catholic, lived his life to truly help others. He volunteered his time with the homeless, he donated money to charity, he helped Habitat for Humanity, gave blood regularly, helped with hurricane relief, went from state to state saving animals from being euthanized, and ultimately gave his life saving a young woman drowning in her car.

When he is greeted in heaven, the Mormons believe he will hear something like this:

"Son.

This is God.

You were a good kid, I will give you that.

Unfortunately for you, it wasn't good enough. You were not a Mormon. You didn't get baptized into the Mormon faith and therefore you have to wait in limbo until someone else does that for you.

No, I do not know when that will be. Maybe tomorrow, maybe 200 years from now.

You might notice people walking right past you into the pearly gates... you might notice some of these people were total jerks and assholes during their lives... the only answer I have for you is that they were Mormon and paid 10% of everything they had to the LDS Church so they could build temples and shopping malls.

I am sure you understand.

Just remember that your spiritual salvation depends on the paperwork they give me.

Oh, and don't worry that Hitler isn't there anymore. The Mormons baptized him and he's in.

Peace out."

Here are a few quotes from people on various news websites voicing their concern for this practice:

Most of you are missing the whole point of this article. It's about BOUNDARIES, people. Mormons want the respect of the rest of us, but aren't willing to respect others' beliefs, to the extent that they will even "baptize" people who cannot give consent. In fact, to justify their extreme lack of respect for others' beliefs, they even trot out the "if it isn't true, why worry and if it is true, you'll thank us" argument.

You just don't get it, do you?

This is the danger of thinking you have "The Truth", whether it be the truth about religion, economics (like the Wall Street Thieves), or politics (like the Neo-Cons who embroiled us in two unwinnable wars). It is arrogance, and it goeth before the fall. -Al ABCNews.com

It is about boundaries. The church has no right to do this, on top of that, it makes no sense whatsoever. Here is another quote I really liked... it begins with a Mormon denying that the baptism even occurred:

THIS IS FALSE, AND ANYONE WITH ANY CONCEPT OF HOW SECURE SITES ON THE INTERNET WORK CAN REALIZE THIS. The Mormons do not have a policy of baptizing those without the consent of some direct linear ancestor. What are you saying is patently false.

Not only that, but had your image from the secure LDS website (which is accessible to anyone who properly registers), it would read https:// in the URL, not just http://. I just logged on, and it is a secured site, and does have the "s".

Your image is nothing more than a doctored up falsity, meant to cause harm to religion you don't like. However, assume it was read. If the Mormons are just a bunch of crazy nut jobs, who cares if they saying the name of anyone as they perform their ordinances? Would you be upset if a Catholic were praying for Obama's mother? -jhoopes AmericaBlog

The reply:

Hello litttle mormon, before telling lies on the internet, you should probably check and see if the LDS church has confirmed this. They did.

Since you probably think that any non-mormon run newspaper is part of some satanic conspiracy, you aer still out of luck, Deseret News printed the story that the LDS church confirmed that this happened as well. If you had any shred of honesty, you would apologize for your lies and false accusations.

But you are mormon, a religion that has been telling lies for 180 years, so I won't hold my breath. Moerover you miss the mark with your praying analogy. This is not like a prayer, Prophet's of the LDS church have decreed that Barack Obama's mother should be put to death for producing a mixed race child, postumously baptising her mormon would be like making Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. an honorary member of the KKK. -LowKey -AmericaBlog

This poor Mormon immediately assumed that he was being persecuted for his faith. He went on the defensive before knowing the facts.

I see that every day.

I also find it amazing that this same religion would have once demanded that Barak Obama be killed because of his mixed race. Here is a quote from Briggy Young:

"Shall I tell you the law of God in regard to the African race? If the white man who belongs to the chosen seed mixes his blood with the seed of Cain, the penalty, under the law of God, is death on the spot. This will always be so." (Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses, Volume 10, page 110.)

Hmmm... interesting, isn't it?

Mormons, you can't have it both ways. You can't cry and complain that people don't understand or respect you while doing this to people.

It is not okay.

It's not!!!

You don't have permission to do it, and if a loving God truly exists he would laugh at this concept.

Andee

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There is a possibility I have shared this before, but I can't help myself...

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It's no secret that I am a huge animal lover. I can't even bring myself to eat meat anymore... of course, I still buy it for my animals. I guess that doesn't make me a real vegetarian, does it? Hmm... inquiring minds want to know...

Last week I received a flickr friend request from Biscuit Fund. I was curious, so I clicked on the link they provided me and my heart was warmed immediately. Biscuit Fund is a fund for providing emergency medical treatment for homeless and wild animals. Both Abbey Road and Spooky Bear, my "children" were rescued, and they have brought me so much joy in my life. I wanted to share some of the stories, so I added Biscuit Fund as a friend, and asked permission to share the photos and stories of some of the animals on their flickr page. Thankfully, they gave permission :)


No, this isn't my Abby... although they both have that cute stripe thing going on. This is Abby's story:

Meowy day to you good people, my name is Abby and I am an 8 year-old Tabby cat. When I was living with my previous family I knew that something funny was going on. I started to see all these boxes and all of their things kept going inside the boxes. Then one day I meowed at the back door to be let in and no one came to answer my call. My guardians had moved and left me behind. This was especially hard on me since I had been declawed and that's a pretty scary situation to be in outside minus your defenses. The next people that moved into my house were very nice but they couldn't keep me either so they brought me to the Comox Valley SPCA. Thanks to the Biscuit Fund I am going to receive a full dental cleaning for my very dirty teeth and then I will find a new home where I will hopefully stay for a very long time.

My heart broke. They just moved and left their cat... their declawed cat!! This poor creature!! Thankfully, they have raised $600 of the $750 needed for Abby's medical care and she will be able to find a new home soon!

Hello, my name is Alexandria and I am an adult grey and white female cat. I was a stray cat before the Surrey SPCA came to my rescue! While I was in their care they discovered that I was pregnant (oops!) so I got to go to a nice and fancy foster home to have my kittens. I spent eight weeks there, nursing my kittens, teaching them manners (kids these days) and breaking up the kitten fights. Before I can be adopted I require a dental cleaning, I think that will be a piece of cake after giving birth to several kittens!

Thanks to online donations Alex now has the money she needed for her dental work. I hope she finds a loving home as soon as possible... she deserves to live like a princess.

Hi! My name is Baby and I am a 4 month-old male tabby kitten. I won't be a baby for very long so I hope my name changes eventually! Imagine that, calling a big tough, adventurous kitten like me Baby. Meow! I was a stray kitten (tough stray kitten) living the stray kitten life on the streets of Kelowna before I arrived at the SPCA. I'm kinda glad I was brought here since it was starting to get chilly outside! While I was staying at the shelter I developed a cold and that led to my eye becoming infected. This is my before picture here but thanks to the Biscuit Fund I received a surgery to have my painful eye removed. Can you imagine how much tougher I look now? Grrr... no one's going to call me Baby again!

This kitten has been through so much. I hope "baby" finds a good home... and soon.

Hello, my name is Banjo and I am 4 month-old Blue Tick Hound. I was living in a puppy mill when I injured my leg. I thought it would be fun to go in the barn and to venture out into the loft, but then I slipped and fell and broke my leg. My guardian couldn't afford the cost of my medical treatment so I was surrendered to the Nanaimo SPCA. Even though my leg really hurt, I was a really good boy so all the shelter staff and volunteers really really like me! Thanks to the Biscuit Fund I am to receive surgery to fix my leg so I can go back to being an adventurous puppy!

I am happy to announce that Banjo has healed from his surgery and he was adopted into a loving home. He now enjoys being a puppy and doing puppy things. Thats how it should be.

The last story I am going to share means a lot to me.

I grew up in the middle of nowhere, and when you grow up in the middle of nowhere, you have the opportunity to be around horses. My Mom and I have always loved horses, although there is no way we could afford one right now. If I ever win the lottery, I will build a log cabin in the middle of nowhere and take in abused horses and other animals. I swear. Anyway, here is Benjamin's story:

Hello, my name is Benjamin and I am a 4 year-old Chestnut Quarter Horse. I was found by the side of a busy rural road in Quesnel with my front feet tethered together and I was wearing a halter with a rope attached to it. I was in a dreadful state when the BC SPCA rescued me. I was very thin, I had burrs in my tail and warts all over my face. I also had a tumor on my side. The shelter staff immediately found a wonderful foster home for me and thanks to the Biscuit Fund I received surgery to remove the tumor. With proper food and rest I found out the warts will go away. I will make someone a very good first horse as I am well mannered and have a very sweet nature!

UPDATE
Hello Everyone,
I'm so happy to tell you that I've been adopted by some wonderful people who have given me a super barn to live in with lots of fresh hay, water and delicious food every day.
Thank you all. I'm so grateful that I could just whinny!

Okay, so what was the point of this?

Everyone has the ability to help animals in their area. You might not be able to adopt an animal and bring them home, but if you have the time you could volunteer or even donate money to an organization like this that saves lives.

There are tons of animals on this website that still need our help. There are animal shelters in our own area that need our help. We can do it, we just need to get the word out and do what we can.

Animals mean so much to so many. We could do so much more!

Andee

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Here are some of the things I have been working on...

The first set is some cupcakes I made with leftover fondant. I was inspired by a photo I saw on WeeLoveBaking, and decided to do my own take on the idea. Mine turned out okay, but not even close to the wonderful work done by the original baker. Be sure to check out her stuff!!



It was time for me to try a new chocolate chip cookie recipe, and I knew I couldn't go wrong if I went with Martha Stewart. I was right. The cookie recipe was delicious, and unfortunately I don't have time to search for the link... just look up "chewy chocolate chip" on her recipe info and it should be there for you. For the chocolate cookies I added melted bakers chocolate to the batter and used white chocolate chips.



This set of cupcakes were inspired by Mother's Day. They were really good, and I took a lot of time on them. I really like the quilted design of the first one..

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Check out these videos from YouTube:

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"Your Children Need the Church to be Good People."

Someone shared a story about having a stake president and GA stop at her home in an attempt to get her back into church. She received a phone call the day before, and told them they could stop by after church. She has been inactive for some time, and since her husband was working, she invited the men into her home for a discussion.

When they arrived, she quickly learned it wasn't a GA. It was an area 70... big deal. Blah. Don't get me wrong... none of these men would be on my "Who would you invite to dinner if you could" list," but when someone promises you a GA, they should deliver ;) Just sayin'.

They asked her why she no longer attended services, paid tithing, and took her children to church. She told them that she had studied church history over the course of 10 years, and that she came to the conclusion (like many others) that the church isn't what it claims to be. The Stake President (whom she knows and considers a friend) mentioned that he, too, knew things about church history that were troubling, but he still knew in his heart the church was true. This amazing woman looked him in the eye and said, "People come to your conclusion, and people come to my conclusion."

On their way out of the door the GA said, "Your children need the church to be good people."

This is soooooooooo false.

You don't need to be a certain religion, have a certain set of beliefs, or even a belief in God to be a good person. You don't.

There are good people out there in every single country, every religion, and you know what? I know a ton of atheists who are better people than most who consider themselves good Christian people.

Atheists and Agnostics don't do good things because they are afraid they won't make it into heaven or because God will punish them. They do good things because it's the right thing to do!

What this douche was doing was try to make her second guess herself by using the emotional tie she had with her kids. It's so low. It's lower than low.

I think people really are starting to leave the church in large numbers... especially after Proposition H8. If they are trying to pull this crap to get people back into church they must really be hurting.

It's so stupid. It's low. It's one of the silliest things I have ever heard!

Andee

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Check this out:

Called to Repentance in Sacrament Meeting

I freaking kid you not!! I went to church for the first time in like a year....took my kids and my DH for a baby blessing. We went to my Dad's ward. The ward we grew up in. 4 of us 6 siblings were there attending and out of 6 siblings 5 have left the church.

Some person got up and called us by name...first and last and preceeded to tell us that we had been taught the truth and that they knew that "we" knew the truth and called us to repentece and told us to come back to the fold.

I can't even tell you how pissed I am. In front of my children none the less.

I am shocked, I have never heard of this happening. I don't know what to even think.

Can you believe this?

Really?

I can.

Lets begin with the thought that this person went to church to be there for her family. She doesn't believe in the Mormon Church anymore, but she stepped out of herself and her beliefs to do something for her family members. A baby blessing.

Now, someone gets up and has the nerve to call her out over the podium? BY NAME? Are you kidding me?

OMFG.

If that happened to me, I would have stood up, given a good long look at the person behind the poduim, and then left the room.

This is so out of line. I can't get over it!!

Andee

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Sorry I haven't been updating the blog as much as I usually do, I have a lot on my mind right now and I am really stressed out. Don't worry, things will be fine, I just have a hard time concentrating right now.

I wanted to share this gross product with you guys because... well... because it's disgusting and I have no idea who would actually eat this stuff. I'm not saying that because I am a vegetarian, I am saying it because it's downright disgusting. Check it out:


It looks like the poor creature was killed and then tossed into toxic waste! How gross is this!?!?!?! Who would eat that?? Who???

These people ate it. Click the link for the story and more photos...

Andee

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